The Overpowered Cult Leader at the Academy Chapter 116

Chapter 116

Special Unit (1)

“Did you pack everything?”

“Ah! Yes.”

Winter handed over a considerable stack of docunts. I stuffed them into my bag and let out a huge yawn.

There were quite a lot of docunts that had to be submitted to the Imperial House and the Lofty Order. Since Winter had already finished preparing the docunts long ago, there was nothing for to struggle with.

“What about Senior Aro?”

“She found out that Worden was an alchemist and headed to his laboratory together with him.”

Winter nodded and slung the last docunt bag over her shoulder. Seeing that, I left the chapel, and Winter hurriedly followed after .

“What kind of research do you think they’re planning to do?”

Winter, who had now started matching her pace with mine quite naturally, asked what she had been curious about.

“My blood.”

“……What?”

Winter asked back loudly. After spending about two days in the chapel, Aro found out that Worden was an alchemist and imdiately drew my blood.

“Wait a mont.”

“Hm?”

At Winter’s sudden tug on my sleeve, I revealed a puzzled expression. I stood still and watched what she was doing.

Winter grabbed my left arm and pressed here and there repeatedly.

“……This isn’t skin a syringe needle can pierce.”

“Yeah. That’s right. So she just tore the skin open.”

At those words, Winter’s eyes began rolling back. I supported her head before she could collapse alongside it and patted her back.

“……I’m pretty sure I told you to be more careful with your body…….”

Only after regaining her senses did Winter mutter that while examining my left palm.

“How dare they take the Cult Leader’s blood?”

“Hey. Get a grip.”

Her eyes widened as she started muttering strange things, so I lightly tapped her a few tis without hurting her.

Whenever the Cult Leader or the Anaye Order beca involved, Winter beca frightening in a way that didn’t suit her.

“Let’s go.”

After checking thoroughly to see if there were any inflad areas, Winter finally let out a sigh of relief. I led her along.

We still had a long way to go, so we needed to keep moving diligently.

“It’s been a while.”

At the sight of the cathedral visible in the distance, Winter smiled brightly. Seeing her look like a child for once made chuckle.

“Th-the visitor, logbook.”

“Hello.”

As we entered the Lofty Order’s cathedral, we were greeted by a familiar face. I warmly greeted the Believer in charge of the visitor logbook, whom we t every ti we ca to the cathedral.

“A-ah, hello.”

The Believer, trembling all over, greeted us back and handed over the visitor logbook. Wearing a rare smile, I filled out the visitor log.

That frail appearance and the way they still handed over the logbook despite trembling reminded of when I first t Winter.

“Brother. We would like to et the High Priest. Would that be possible?”

“Huh? W-What business do you have with the High Priest?”

After writing the final entry in the visitor logbook, Winter handed it back to the Believer and asked that question. The Believer looked bewildered at the sudden request to et the High Priest.

Among all the Believers of the Lofty Order within the academy, the High Priest possessed the highest status. In practice, the High Priest stood at the very top among those who held religious authority within the academy.

“Um… unless there is a prior appointnt, you cannot et the High Priest. If you tell the purpose of your visit, I will pass the ssage along.”

The Believer carried on the conversation far more smoothly with Winter instead of . At the Believer’s words, Winter waved her hands dismissively.

“No, it’s alright. I was only asking just in case. We have docunts to submit to the Lofty Order.”

“If that’s the case, you may hand them to , and I will process them for you.”

“Thank you.”

After hearing the Believer’s words, both of us quickly took out the stacks of docunts. Seeing the enormous amount of paperwork coming out from both Winter’s bag and mine, the Believer looked puzzled.

“U-Um, these are?”

“This month’s comprehensive report for the Anaye Order, along with reports related to the Sanctuary pilgrimage.”

The Believer cautiously asked after seeing the enormous stack of docunts. Winter answered casually, and the bustling cathedral suddenly beca as silent as a dead mouse.

—What did she just say? Sanctuary?

—I heard that too.

—Isn’t that Davide? How long has it even been since he received the scripture’s selection and founded a Religious Order, and now he already has a Sanctuary?

People who had been passing by without much interest began gathering in small groups and whispering among themselves. Most of them looked doubtful, but none of them voiced it aloud.

I swept my gaze around indifferently. Still, the people here possessed at least a minimum amount of common sense.

“E-Excuse . Would it be possible for to see the Mark of Pilgrimage?”

At the Believer’s words, both Winter and I held out our hands. The Believer flinched in shock at the clearly visible Marks of Pilgrimage.

“So it really is the Mark of Pilgrimage.”

The Believer recognized the Mark of Pilgrimage imdiately and looked at us with reverence. Winter awkwardly scratched the back of her head.

—They said it’s the Mark of Pilgrimage?

—They completed the Sanctuary pilgrimage? Isn’t that Winter Seraphist? The one who couldn’t get into any Religious Order.

The cathedral was a sacred place. The Lofty Order’s cathedral was especially so. Lies could never exist in this place.

Knowing that, the Believers imdiately accepted that Winter and I truly possessed the Marks of Pilgrimage.

“The Marks of Pilgrimage require verification. I will inform the High Priest. Are the two of you the only ones with the Marks of Pilgrimage?”

“There’s one more.”

Seeing the Believer’s jaw instantly drop open, we decided continuing the conversation any further would be difficult.

The murmuring was steadily growing louder, and Winter also seed quite burdened by it. After giving them the chapel’s address, we left the cathedral.

“Now we’re heading to the academic affairs office?”

“Yes!”

Once the people’s gazes faded away, Winter looked as though she could finally breathe easier. Her previously calm face had broken into a bright smile.

“You seem to be in a good mood?”

“Huh? Ah.”

I casually asked after noticing her unusually energetic footsteps. Only then did Winter realize she had beco far more excited than she thought.

“Ahem.”

Winter cleared her throat and fussed with her clothes for no reason. Embarrassed, she turned and walked ahead first. I chuckled quietly and followed behind her.

“Among all the first-year students in the Divine Departnt.”

Winter, who was walking ahead, carefully began speaking. When I lowered my gaze slightly, I could see the top of her small head and her crown.

“I was the only one who couldn’t join a Religious Order.”

“Was that so.”

“Yes. So I went through quite a lot.”

Even Anaye had refused to accept Winter at first.

I only accepted her because I stubbornly persuaded the scripture itself, but other Religious Orders normally didn’t put in that much effort.

“People are the sa no matter where you go.”

“That’s true.”

“I got looked down on a lot too. People mocked .”

I nodded. There was a reason Winter felt burdened by people’s gazes.

“But now I’ve beco a proper priest, and I even completed the Sanctuary pilgrimage.”

“You worked hard.”

“The reactions of all those surprised people keep replaying in my head.”

I listened while watching her silver hair sway.

When I first t her, she had been a timid, tearful, fragile girl lacking confidence.

Even now she cried often, but she had grown much stronger.

“Seeing how differently people react now feels good. It’s not about revenge or anything like that. I’m just proud that I managed to co this far myself.”

I no longer replied. I simply listened to Winter’s words.

“I’m always grateful, Senior.”

“As long as you know that.”

Watching Winter rub at the corners of her eyes with both hands, I patted her shoulder.

***

“Would you like so tea?”

“Ah. Yes. Thank you.”

“…….”

How did things end up like this? We had definitely been on our way to the academic affairs office.

Then we ran into a familiar woman, and deceived by her incredible gift of persuasion, we sohow ended up here. At the Vice-Commander’s words, Winter imdiately thanked her.

“Student Davide?”

“If you give so, I’ll gratefully drink it.”

“Hehe.”

We had co to the Vice-Commander’s office.

Since this was Winter’s first ti here, she kept looking around in admiration.

The Vice-Commander first brought out cookies and offered them to us. She could have simply placed them all on one plate, so why did she separately serve each of us on individual dessert plates?

“Please, eat plenty.”

We each gave our thanks while looking at the cookies. Winter imdiately took a bite, then began eating the cookie with a completely lted expression.

“Please, eat plenty.”

“……Yes. Thank you.”

The Vice-Commander looked at , who remained still, and offered more cookies. Having no other choice, I put one into my mouth.

It was the sa premium cookie I had eaten when eting the Imperial Princess. Only after confirming that we were both eating one after another did the Vice-Commander head toward the kettle where water was boiling.

“I apologize for suddenly calling you here.”

“N-not at all.”

Along with the scent of black tea quickly filling the office, the Vice-Commander offered her apology. Winter hurriedly waved her hands.

“First of all… yes. I heard you safely completed the Sanctuary pilgrimage? Congratulations.”

We both expressed our gratitude at the congratulation delivered with a gentle smile.

To receive congratulations from the Vice-Commander of the Imperial Knight Order.

“I would love to leisurely chat while enjoying tea and refreshnts together, but there’s sothing I must ask first.”

We had been quietly enjoying our tea and exchanging pleasantries when our eyes sharpened at the Vice-Commander’s words. Wearing an apologetic expression, the Vice-Commander slowly opened her mouth.

“A small-scale battle broke out in the Ulla Desert this ti, correct? I heard there were quite a few injured.”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“The Kargula Family directly requested assistance. Because of that, an investigator from our Imperial Knight Order personally stepped in.”

The Vice-Commander’s gaze briefly stopped on . It seed Rama had done as I told him, since the Imperial Knight Order had moved.

“We received a report stating that a monster of the sa kind as the creature from the academy attack incident appeared during that battle. I arranged this eting because I wanted to hear the opinions of the two people who were present at the scene.”

The Fiendbeast was an important matter. Seeing slowly nod, Winter nodded as well.

“The monster you encountered in the desert was definitely a Fiendbeast?”

“Yes. That’s correct. Its appearance was very different from the one we saw during the academy attack, but it was definitely the sa type of entity.”

Co to think of it, both Winter and I were people who had encountered Fiendbeasts during both the attack incident and in the Ulla Desert.

Though, in Winter’s case, she had mostly watched from afar during the incident in the Ulla Desert.

“Could you describe its appearance in detail?”

“First of all, it was disgusting.”

The Vice-Commander, who had been diligently writing in her report, suddenly paused. Winter looked at with an expression of utter exhaustion.

“……Disgusting?”

The Vice-Commander looked at Winter with a subtle expression. Receiving her gaze, Winter seed to ponder briefly before nodding.

“It was far more disgusting than the one from the academy attack incident.”

“I-I see.”

“It had a hexagonal pillar-like body standing upright like a tower, and beneath it were six spider-like legs supporting its body. As for sensory organs, the only confird one was its eyes.”

At the detailed explanation that followed, the Vice-Commander once again began writing diligently in the report.

“And you encountered a magician from the organization believed to have created that Fiendbeast?”

After hearing the rough details about the Fiendbeast, the Vice-Commander next ntioned the Magus magician.

“There wasn’t anything particularly distinctive about his appearance. There were no characteristics symbolizing the organization either.”

“I see.”

“His objective was gathering the desert’s spiritual energy. It also appeared that he orchestrated the internal conflict within the Kargula Family.”

I explained in detail everything that had happened in the Ulla Desert. The Vice-Commander listened to my story with a fairly serious expression.

“I see.”

After hearing everything, the Vice-Commander asked for our understanding and fell into thought for a mont. My eyes t Winter’s.

At so point, Winter’s share of cookies had completely disappeared. I pushed my own portion of cookies toward her. Though initially startled, Winter hesitated briefly before quickly taking the cookies.

“Student Davide. And Student Winter.”

At the Vice-Commander’s suddenly serious voice, Winter froze just as she was about to eat a cookie.

“I apologize for this, but I believe both of you will need to attend an audience with Her Imperial Highness, the Imperial Princess.”

Winter quietly put the cookie back down. I furrowed my brow. I had sowhat expected that I would be summoned.

But was there really a reason to summon Winter as well? Looking at the Vice-Commander calmly eting my gaze, I let out a small sigh.

“It is a summons from Her Imperial Highness, the Imperial Princess. Naturally, we must answer it.”